Spot-Lit for February 2013

February brings books by popular authors ranging from Dave Barry to Danielle Steel, and from literary limelighters such as Ismail Kadare and Jamaica Kincaid (her first novel in 10 years). Find these and more in our complete list of items on order here. Below you’ll find a hand-picked mix of books we think you’ll especially want to know about – click on the links to read more about them or place them on hold.

Jonny Valentine is a preadolescent pop star in this sharp, witty and humane satire that looks at our obsession with celebrity worship, fame and star-making’s devastating effects on childhood innocence.

Previous Shirley Jackson Award-winner Ogawa is in fine form in these eleven interconnected stories. As the publisher puts it, “Revenge is a master class in the macabre that will haunt you to the last page.”

An inept, middle-aged man has already lost his wife, his job, a fortune (to a hedge fund that tanked in the wake of 9/11), and spurred his eldest daughter to flee. Now his youngest daughter, Tirza, wants to travel in Africa with her boyfriend – who looks just like Mohammed Atta. The publisher calls this “a heartrending and masterful story of a man seeking redemption.”

When a big-time casino robbery goes awry, the perps call in a mysterious fixer known only as Jack to help salvage the situation – while staying one step ahead of the FBI. This white-knuckle thriller introduces a strong new talent.

Under trying circumstances, everyman Jason Getty commits a murder and buries the body in his backyard – but his life gets complicated when a landscaper discovers two more bodies buried on his property. An assured and entertaining debut.

Leo Maxwell is in for some shocking surprises about his family when he tries to figure out who killed his criminal defense attorney brother – a man as reviled by street thugs as by those working in the police department.

The MacBrides live a life of upper-class privilege, but upon the death of Lydia, the family matriarch, they discover they have an unknown enemy who claims Lydia was a murderer, and he is intent on taking the family down.

A pair of documentary filmmakers find more than they were looking for as they re-examine the 1970s mass suicide by members of the Temple of the Last Days cult. This paranormal thriller may well keep you awake at night.